The ability to take the Quality Method approach to the whole equipment portfolio will comprehensively reduce risk, cost and improve patient outcomes.

MTS Health is working with the NHS to deliver assurance to the Trust executives that systems are in place for the safe management of medical devices, Cost Improvement targets, Cost Avoidance strategies and Governance and patient safety.

Medical Device Management

The MTS Medical Device Management model can demonstrate the significant financial benefit of migrating fragmented asset management structures, towards a centralised budget model. With a greater focus required for clinical governance and patient safety, it has has come paramount for NHS Trusts and Private Sector providers to have a robust medical device strategy. Examples of delivering modern asset management models for medical devices are at Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, Colchester Hospitals and Norfolk NHS Trusts. MTS has worked alongside the Trusts to identify areas for improvement including centralised equipment procurement, correctly tracking and replacement planning of assets, identifying equipment wastage, centralising equipment maintenance contracts amongst other finance related issues.

Governance and CQC Compliance

Assisting and maintain trusts to provide the necessary assistance that they can. Achieving and maintaining compliance with MHRA guidance and CQC outcomes is now an essential part of the Medical Device Management strategy. Central to this is the provision of a robust medical device and equipment asset management strategy, providing assurance that the organisation is CQC compliant. MTS is developing Medical Device Policies and operational policies to reflect best practice and compliance. These policies assess corrective actions following audits and implement.

Asset Validation

An accurate inventory is the cornerstone of an efficient asset management infrastructure. This is integral to managing risks and controlling costs as well as underpinning compliance with MHRA guidance and CQC outcomes. MTS has completed over 30 asset validation and due diligence reports including Lewisham and Greenwich, Colchester, Chelmsford and Manchester Hospitals. The Asset Surveys has often included a comparison between the hospital inventory and Capital asset register, tagging and barcoding whole hospital equipment assets, equipment condition surveys, equipment Transfer surveys including space planning as part of a new build equipping exercise and lifecycle predictions for forecasting. All of our work is underpinned by the MTS Asset Management Database.

Training

It is recognised that Clinical User equipment training is central to a Trust’s risk reduction strategy and reducing NHSLA contribution costs. MTS can support Trusts to develop processes for maximising the benefits of competency training and assessment, in line with the Medical Devices Policy. Although many Trust’s work “in the spirit” of reducing clinical risk through training, it is often comes with an administrative burden which make compliance difficult to prove. Outcome 11 must be implemented and proven. MTS has extensive experience in training and also management of the databases which support the proof of these activities. MTS provides a range of services to either implement user-training processes or migrate a Trust onto more efficient processes reducing the administrative overhead and associated costs, by training compliance audits, re-engineering existing training processes, benchmarking and evidence based experience of best practice.

Contract Management

Most health providers face challenges in managing multi departmental equipment maintenance contracts, which are provided as a mix of internal and external agreements. This is often exacerbated by the various operational silos found within Trusts resulting in disparate contract lists and poor capture of service history or management of performance. MTS work with the NHS to review and manage the rationalisation of multiple manufacturer contracts, reconciliation and management of the Trust’s equipment inventory and potential issues resulting from poor utilisation of equipment.

Procurement Advisory

MTS has a well established database of pricing and product specifications which are regularly benchmarked and updated. The wealth of information that MTS has gathered will support the NHS and private sector providers in the most cost effective procurement of equipment assets. Ensuring that the equipment is fit for clinical use, the quantities required are appropriate and that there is a consistent approach to standardisation. MTS Health can actively demonstrate the benefits of this approach through significant savings with major technology gains as demonstrated by the successful delivery of procurement projects at Barts Health, Mid Essex Hospitals and Chelsea & Westminster hospital new build projects. MTS has most recently undertaken a number of high pressure projects which while smaller in scale are still complex to manage due to programming issues.